{"id":3745,"date":"2015-11-28T23:41:58","date_gmt":"2015-11-29T06:41:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/?p=3745"},"modified":"2015-11-28T23:41:58","modified_gmt":"2015-11-29T06:41:58","slug":"nablopomo-winds-down-writing-struggles-and-ta-nehesi-coates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cynthiasamuels.com\/blog\/2015\/11\/28\/nablopomo-winds-down-writing-struggles-and-ta-nehesi-coates\/","title":{"rendered":"NABLOPOMO Winds Down; Writing Struggles and Ta-Nehesi Coates"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"November<\/a>
\nThe sun has set upon Shabbat; now we need a Saturday post. \u00a0Today is the 28th; Monday is the last day of November and also of NABLPOMO. \u00a0I’ve managed every day except one Shabbat that I forgot to set up in advance, and have been glad, each day, of the commitment.<\/p>\n

It’s so easy to let things go; just look at my very embarrassing\u00a0WordPress chart:\u00a0gaping holes all over the place.\u00a0June is a little better than the rest because we were traveling and my blog is always lively when we’re on the road, but basically it’s a portrait of an undisciplined writer.<\/p>\n

Then\u00a0November rolled around, and with it the opportunity to accept an external structure.\u00a0 I made a promise; it wasn’t a case of writing when I felt like it. \u00a0I would\u00a0write every single day.<\/p>\n

I love the process, once the idea comes. \u00a0Of course with most posts I am certain what I’m posting sucks, no matter how often I edit it. \u00a0Usually, when I read it later,\u00a0it’s better than I’d thought. \u00a0Always there’s room to improve, sometimes there’s also real potential. \u00a0My favorite posts for the month:<\/p>\n

Abortion and Olivia: Prison Has Many Forms and So Does Freedom<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

The War for the Souls of Orthodox Jewish Women (and Men) and Why It Matters<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cTruth\u201d and \u201cSpotlight\u201d and the News<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Good Girls Revolt \u2014 When Men Were \u201cMad\u201d and Women Were Researchers<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Author Ta-Nahesi Coates, whose amazing Between the World and Me<\/a> has informed (and transformed) much of my perspective on our country today, described his own labors toward writing, and writing “breakthroughs,” here. \u00a0It has been very helpful to me this month and, I suspect, will continue to be.<\/p>\n